Falling
by RoyaleDeuce
Summary: Sakuno's more problematic than usual. Ryoma's just plain confused. One thing's for sure though: everything had something to do with 'falling'. Both in the literal sense and not — RyomaSakuno
1. Head Over Heels

**Falling  
**_**by: **_RoyaleDeuce

**Pairing: **[RyoSaku]  
**Summary: **He figured her stumbles suggested something more colossal than usual.  
**Disclaimer: **TeniPuri & 1 Litre of Tears aren't mine.  
**Note: **Dedicated to aKemi-chan05.  
**Warning: **Crack-ish. Do not take seriously to enjoy! **(:))**

* * *

_**Chapter 1  
**_Head Over Heels

* * *

"Stupid oyaji," Ryoma muttered under his breath, closing the sliding door with as much force as he could.

He could never understand what was so appealing with magazines of girls in lingerie. And to add to his bewilderment, he could not believe that his father deliberately shunned him when he asked for a match. It wasn't like he asked for a diamond ring or a Ferrari. He was merely asking for a _tennis game_, yet his father would not concede to this simple request.

Unable to think of something productive to do, Ryoma resorted to hunt for his favourite companion. After five minutes of going around the house, the search for his pet ended up futile. There was no trace of the said cat anywhere; no paw-prints, no mewls, no nothing. It was only when he passed by the living room area when he heard... _sounds. _It was barely audible, but they were there. Thinking it was his beloved cat, he poked his head around the corner for a look.

"Nanako-san?" Ryoma's eyes were a fraction wider at the sight that greeted him instead.

Sitting comfortably on a bean bag positioned right in front of the television was Nanako, her hair dishevelled and her red, puffy eyes streaming with tears. The sound he heard earlier was her cousin's _sobbing. _

Ryoma stood frozen in place.

The first coherent thought that crossed his mind was that his cousin lost her favourite saucepan. But he realized that it was impossible to lose something that big in a kitchen so well organized (care of Nanako, of course). So, he decided against it. The next thought made his blood run cold though. Did it have something to do with the loss of his cat...?

"I-Is he dead?"

Averting her gaze from the television, Nanako was surprised to find her cousin ghastly white by the doorway. "Ryoma!" she gasped, quickly wiping the tears away with the sleeve of her blouse and smiled at the boy. "Are you alright?" she asked worriedly.

"Are _you _alright?" Ryoma shot back after composing himself. "Is _he _alright?" he added faintly.

"Who's _he?_" asked Nanako while reaching for the remote, "I was just watching something really sad on TV, so don't mind my tears..."

"Oh." Ryoma could feel the warmth creeping on his face. And he thought something happened to his cat.

"Would you like to watch?" Nanako invited, patting the vacant spot beside her. "It's a really good show, and you don't seem to be doing anything anyway... unless you're going to play tennis?" she looked at Ryoma expectantly.

"No," Ryoma muttered with subtle bitterness, and quickly took a seat beside Nanako who brightened at his choice. "What are we watching?"

"1 Litre of Tears."

For the next several hours, Ryoma witnessed the story of a young girl's struggle with her incurable disease. At first, he was sceptical about the entire thing. His thoughts drifted to questions like: How could someone be so clumsy? Why were they all making such a big thing when the girl tripped?

"What's so sad about this?"

"Ryoma, the girl has an incurable disease—"

"The spinocellery de-genitalia disease?"

"It's spinocerebellar degeneration disease."

"Hn."

Although impassive in the beginning, Ryoma eventually began to feel for the girl. Since the Spinocerebellar Degeneration Disease affects the brain and the spinal cord, the girl's disease gradually deteriorated her coordination – one by one, it took away her ability to walk, to swallow easily, to speak, and to move freely. For the rest of the afternoon, Nanako's sobs echoed in the living room as Ryoma remained thoroughly captivated… until someone intruded.

"Nanako? Are you crying?" Nanjiroh exclaimed when he happened to pass by the living room. His eyes almost bulged out of its sockets when he saw the person beside the girl. "Ryoma?!"

Ryoma currently had his face three inches away from the television, his expression serious as he continued to watch the show without a care of his surroundings.

Couldn't help himself, Nanjiroh laughed his head off. Who knew his son could be so engrossed in something besides tennis?

"Hey, shounen!"

"Today's Sunday! You seem to be forgetting something, Ryoma!"

Nanjiroh's eyebrows twitched. "Get your butt off that chair!"

There was silence as Ryoma remained unresponsive and the only thing heard was the conversation from the television.

"_For those people who are really listening, they will definitely understand."_

"Tsk. Idiotic son… Wasting an opportunity with a girl," Nanjiroh grumbled as he stormed off to read more magazines.

"Oh no, Ryoma-kun! You're supposed to coach Ryuuzaki-chan in tennis today!" Nanako cried, staring at her cousin who was still so into what he was watching.

"Hn," Ryoma responded, his eyes never leaving the screen of the television. "It's not like she's going to die if I miss one lesson anyway..."

Nanako sighed at her cousin's use of words. She just hoped things wouldn't turn out so bad for the two.

* * *

"Are you ready, Sakuno-chan?"

With banners and pompoms ready, Tomoka brightly grinned at her friend. Sakuno was currently seated on the side bench, composing herself for her most important game yet.

"I think so…" Sakuno mumbled. _I hope so… _

Inwardly, she was greatly terrified for herself. Sure, she practiced hard for the past several weeks in preparation for this game. But the no-show of her supposed tennis coach held no assurance for a good performance in the courts that day. The boy didn't even call to inform her that he wasn't going to show up. She actually hoped for an apology, too. But Ryoma left her disappointed. Then, it dawned on her that probably, the boy had given up in being her coach – considering how absolutely pathetic she was in tennis.

"Ryuuzaki, you're up!" the girl's tennis club captain called.

_I can do this._ With tennis racket ready, Sakuno awkwardly stood up from her bench and headed towards the courts.

"Break a leg, Sakuno-chan!" Tomoka called from the sidelines, her props already set up for everyone to see gloriously. "S-A-K-U-N-O, FIGHT-O!" she cheered while waving her pompoms up and down. "DO YOUR BEST!"

Sakuno blushed as she walked her way to her side of the court. In spite of all the cheering they did for the Seigaku regulars, she still could not find herself getting used to her friend's excessive energy in the sidelines. As soon as she saw who her opponent was, a big girl with an expression like Kaidoh-senpai, Sakuno paled.

"God bless me."

* * *

"Hey, hey! Is that Ryuuzaki-san, nya!?"

All three regulars stopped walking and glanced at the girl's tennis courts, where a heated match was currently taking place.

"It is her!" Momoshiro exclaimed, quickly approaching the net that surrounded the courts for a better look.

"Her play's not so bad," Fuji commented with a smile as he, too, stopped by to watch. "Though her knees are too stiff."

"Where's o'chibi!? He has to watch this!" Kikumaru said excitedly, scanning the area. "Hey, there's Osakada-san cheering, nya!" he told the other two who also turned to the direction of their kouhai cheering loudly with pompoms and the entire enchilada. "OSAKADA-SAN!" he cried and started waving.

"Senpai-tachi!" Tomoka rushed to her upperclassmen and greeted them politely. "Ne, don't you have tennis practice?"

"We just stopped by to watch for a few minutes…" Fuji replied, his attention still on the game. "Ne, Ryuuzaki-san's footwork isn't so good…"

"Ah, Fujiko! You're too harsh! Ryuuzaki-san's only a beginner!" Kikumaru glared at his teammate.

"But I heard she's been practicing really hard," Momoshiro said, smiling goofily. "With Echizen at that."

"Really?" Both Fuji and Kikumaru asked with growing interest.

"They actually just had a lesson yesterday," Tomoka giggled after taking a break from her continuous shouts of 'Go, Sakuno-chan!'.

"Ah, young love..." Momoshiro chuckled, shaking his head in amusement.

* * *

It all happened so fast.

She was running to return her senpai's volley, when instead of the ball hitting her racket, it went straight to her leg. The next moment, she was lying face flat on the ground.

"SAKUNO-CHAN!"

"RYUUZAKI-SAN!"

"Ow..."

"Ryuuzaki, can you stand up?" the tennis club captain asked.

Sakuno tried lifting herself off the ground, but the wobbly sensation kept her from completely doing so. Then, she noticed drops of blood from where she previously lay. Touching her sore chin, her eyes widened when she looked at her bloodied hand.

"She's got an injury!"

Sakuno's blush never left her face as everyone fussed – they even carried her to the bench! The pulsing pain in her chin was replaced by embarrassment at the attention she was getting. Really, they didn't have to make such a big deal of her fall. She was _Ryuuzaki Sakuno _for crying out loud. It wasn't out of the norm for her to stumble every now and then.

"Ne, Sakuno-chan... When I said 'break a leg', I didn't mean that you do it literally."

Sakuno chuckled, "Ah... Tomo-chan..." And then she reddened when she saw the people tagging along with her best friend: Momoshiro, Kikumaru, and Fuji. "S-S-Senpai-tachi?"

"Are you alright now, Ryuuzaki-san?" Momoshiro asked, eyeing the wound on Sakuno's leg and chin. "That was quite a nasty fall."

"Mmm..." Sakuno nodded her head and smiled.

"Phew! You got me worried there, nya!" Kikumaru laughed relieved, "Be more careful next time, okay?"

Sakuno nodded again, her cheeks already a deep crimson.

"And improve on your footwork, ne Ryuuzaki-san? That was one of the reasons why you fell..." Fuji added, causing Sakuno to blush even more and fidget awkwardly on her seat.

"Stop being so mean, Fujiko," Kikumaru murmured, staring at his friend incredulously. Then he turned to Sakuno who was looking more of a human tomato as moments passed by. "Nya, don't worry, Ryuuzaki-san! With o'chibi as your coach, you'll have your footwork fixed in no time!"

"H-Hai..." Sakuno smiled faintly.

The momentary pain on Sakuno's face wasn't missed by a certain tennis tensai. He was quite sure it had nothing to do with her injury... It was the thought of Echizen that seemed to distress the girl even more.

* * *

Ryoma had to thank his senpai-tachi for their unpunctuality in practice that day. He pitied them for having to endure the torture of running laps, really. But he wouldn't have had the opportunity to slip away to buy his favourite flavoured drink if it weren't for their misfortune. He wondered why they were late though...

"You did _what_?!"

The moment he heard his tennis coach's uproar, the first survival instinct he did was plaster himself on the wall and hope he wouldn't be discovered.

"W-Well, her wounds are all cleaned. And she said that she can walk..."

And that's when he realized how absolutely stupid he looked plastering himself on the wall, fearing for his life. Sumire hadn't seen him, and was talking to someone else. Feeling relieved, he resumed his previous sneaking activities and went past the clinic when the old lady spoke again.

"I am no nurse, but this is my _granddaughter_ we're talking about!"

_Tsk... They're fussing over something so trivial, _he thought as he continued on his way to the vending machine.

It was only when Ryoma took his shortcut back to the courts when he saw the limp figure of Sakuno sprawled near the shrubbery. He stayed rooted to his spot in pure disbelief of what he was seeing. It took him another moment to respond.

"Ryuuzaki!"

"R-Ryoma-kun?" Sakuno looked up from her position, her chocolate orbs staring at him in shock. The girl shakily pushed her body off the ground, but she landed right back on the concrete with a loud _oomph. _

"Idiot," Ryoma muttered, kneeling down right beside Sakuno and carefully lifting her from the floor for a piggyback. Ignoring the girl's burning face and silent protests, he wrapped her arms around his neck and hoisted her up to be brought to the clinic.

"T-Thank you..." she whispered in his ear.

The tingling pain in her legs was enough to send her crying, but she did her best to ignore the sting in her eyes and stifle her sobs. It seemed like he was making up for his absence last Sunday; but then again, her fall would have been prevented if he showed up and helped her do something about her pitiful footwork. As she took in deep breaths and eventually relaxed, she found herself savouring the overall experience of getting a piggyback from the boy she liked – his masculine scent, his soft tresses, and his gentle touch.

Sakuno smiled softly and rested her head on his shoulder.

Maybe she could forgive him this time around.

Ryoma surprised his sensei and the school nurse when he entered the clinic with Sakuno on his back. Without uttering a word, he placed Sakuno on one of the beds, greeted the still shocked elders with a nod, and then went off on his merry way.

The revelation that unfolded before his very eyes was still too overwhelming to sink in. Why was his sensei making such a big deal of the girl's fall? In the first place, why did she fall that easily?

"The spinocellery de-genitalia disease," he told himself, horrified.

By the time he returned to club, his senpai-tachi were done doing their laps. He planned to slip inside unnoticed when Horio, the ever loyal friend he was, twittered.

"Echizen! Where have you been?"

All regulars snapped their heads toward his direction. He lowered the brim of his cap when his gaze met Tezuka's.

_Crap._

"Echizen, fifty laps."

* * *

**A/N: **Isn't a confused Ryoma just adorable? Lol. Witness the chaos in the next chapter! This is my first time doing a two-shot. My classes already start next Monday, and I told myself I'd be on hiatus in my senior year. So, expect an update some time this weekend. Hopefully, I can post it by then. More RyoSaku moments next chapter! **(:)) **So how was it? Was it bad? Good? Please review!


	2. MU

_**Chapter 2**_**  
**M.U.: Misunderstanding

* * *

"Sakuno-chan!" Tomoka cried upon seeing her friend by the doorway. "What happened?!"

Like wildfire, a blush instantly crept on Sakuno's face when all eyes were fixed on her. Her classmates' expressions were a mixture of surprise and worry, and even if she already expected everyone's reaction, she still can't help but feel uncomfortable at the attention she was getting. It took her quite a while to find her voice and respond to everyone's questioning gaze.

"I-I fell yesterday."

That one sentence sparked an influx of questions right after. At the next moment, Sakuno was surrounded.

"You fell again?!"

"Was your fall that bad, Ryuuzaki?"

"How long will you have to be in a wheelchair?"

That's right. Ryuuzaki Sakuno had to enter Seigaku in a wheelchair that morning. After that day's preordained fall, she was told that she had sprained her ankle. She was actually asked to use crutches until her injury had fully healed, but Sumire had requested that she use a wheelchair instead. According to her grandmother, considering her God-given clumsiness, crutches, which required some coordination, would only make things worse. And that explained why she had the entire enchilada for a sprained ankle. If only her foot hadn't been caught in the protruding water pipe when she was escaping from the school nurse, she wouldn't have to endure going around school in a wheelchair.

Well, there was something worse than that.

Her classmates were still looking at her, expectant of her reply. She turned a darker shade of red.

The attention she was receiving would without a doubt bother her to no end.

"So how exactly did you fall, Sakuno?" Tomoka asked concernedly.

But before she could begin answering her classmates' questions, the subject teacher appeared at the other classroom door. The entire class, including Sakuno, dispersed from the second doorway and headed towards their respective seats. When the History teacher entered the classroom, he quickly spotted a certain auburn-head struggling to cross the room in her wheelchair.

"Ryuuzaki," the teacher called out as soon as his student was settled in her seat.

Sakuno immediately stiffened when all eyes were on her again. "Y-Yes?"

"I heard about your accident yesterday," the history teacher started, his face serious. "The entire faculty had been informed about your tendency to attract disaster like a magnet, so I would suggest that you always have someone to accompany you wherever you go. I wouldn't want to risk your condition, or anyone else's for the matter, and make things worse. Understood?"

And here comes the worst part.

Sakuno had no other choice but to comply. "Understood," she responded softly.

She would be a burden to everybody for the rest of the week.

* * *

With her abnormally long, twin braids, it wasn't difficult to recognize Ryuuzaki Sakuno. After all, she was the only one who wore her hair like that. But counting the state she was in right now, it was even easier to spot her in the crowd.

"What happened to Ryuuzaki?" Horio asked as the said girl and her cheerleader friend entered the cafeteria. "I bet she tripped again. But this time, she might have fallen down the stairs or something," he declared, apparently pleased with himself for coming up with such conclusion. However, his eyebrows furrowed when he realized his company wasn't paying attention to him and seemed to be focusing on something else. "Hey, Echizen, were you listening to me?"

"Not at all," Was the tennis prince's nonchalant reply.

Ignoring Horio's resulting whine, Ryoma continued to watch Sakuno from a distance. The sight of the girl troubled him, for the suspicion he held onto regarding the girl's series of unfortunate events was finally confirmed. There could only be one reason why the girl lacked poise and eventually had to end up in a wheelchair.

_The Spinocerebellar Degeneration Disease, _he thought, averting his gaze away from Sakuno.

* * *

"Don't mind the stares, Sakuno-chan."

Sakuno had her gaze on her entwined hands on her lap the moment they entered the cafeteria. As Tomoka pushed her inside, whispers erupted. The entire time, Sakuno had kept her head down; but as the murmurs diminished, she looked up and immediately saw Ryoma in a table with the freshmen trio. Horio, Katsuo, and Kachiro were shamelessly looking at her, confusion evident in their faces. But Ryoma had his eyes set on the table, his mind seemingly elsewhere.

Sakuno didn't know whether she should be glad or disappointed that the boy was not looking her way. From what happened yesterday, Sakuno felt that Ryoma actually cared. He carried her to the infirmary, hadn't he? Even if the boy seemed to not give a damn about her at the moment, Sakuno thought that Ryoma still deserved a thank you for what he did yesterday. When the boy brought her to the school nurse, it surprised Sakuno that the great Echizen Ryoma, who could defeat opponents in a snap of the finger, had a gentle touch.

The boy touched her as if she was the most fragile thing in the world.

With that, Sakuno can't help but fall deeper.

* * *

"May I go to the restroom, sensei?"

Her P.E. teacher turned to her, "The game is still on-going. Do you think you'll be able to hold it until the end of the game?"

Sakuno blushed, and shyly shook her head. "I-I really need to go."

They had gym class that afternoon. Unfortunately, for Sakuno, she had to miss the simultaneous practical exams all thanks to her handicap. Since she was not permitted to wander around school alone, her subject teacher asked her to stay put as everyone underwent the test. Being the obedient student she was, Sakuno stayed in a corner and watched everyone play for two hours. Everything was fine until her bladder had to enter the picture.

"Will you be able to manage on your own?" her teacher asked.

"Yes," she assured and was eventually given permission right after.

Sakuno was taken aback when she saw the enormous crowd outside the gymnasium. She concluded that there was an accident of some sorts, but as soon as she heard the cheers and applause, she remembered that it was the seniors' Annual Sports Olympiad that day. Sure enough, the swimming pool, the soccer field, and the track and field were all occupied by seniors as each class competed with each other. The freshmen would have their Olympiad two weeks from now, and by then Sakuno hoped her ankle was already healed. She wanted to represent their batch in the Inter-level tournaments, which was why she had worked so hard to get into the girl's tennis club in the first place.

Thinking of the best route to the nearest restrooms, Sakuno decided to pass by the tennis courts. Just as she turned around the corner, she was greeted by the sight of senior boys running towards her direction_. _

"Run!" one of the boys cried.

Sakuno didn't think twice in moving away from the stampede. She quickly manoeuvred her wheelchair through nooks and turns, fearing for her life. The funny thing was the senior boys looked as if they were actually chasing her because wherever she went, they would still always be several meters behind.

It took fifteen minutes of avoiding the thousands of pounds right after her when Sakuno finally accepted that the boys _were _running after her. Regardless of the reason, all the girl knew was that her body was at its limit. Not to mention her bladder!

Desperate, Sakuno headed back towards the tennis courts. There, she left her wheelchair by the surprisingly empty tennis courts, hoping that it would cause a diversion of some sort. And then she _attempted _to walk towards the bathrooms were she intended to hide. But due to her lack of energy, she was only successful in reaching the vending machines, which was still half way from her destination.

She gave up and plopped herself on the ground as she tried catching her breath.

Let the senior boys crush her for all she cared. She was pooped!

And just as she thought that all the burly boys would pop out in the corner, it was a small, lean boy who appeared instead.

Sakuno wished the earth would swallow her up that moment.

"R-Ryoma-kun," she whispered, horrified.

"Ryuuzaki," the boy stopped in his tracks as he took in the sight of Sakuno looking helpless on the ground. "What are you doing?"

Sakuno turned an incredibly deep shade of red as she thought of a way to explain her situation. Frantically wracking her brain for the perfect words to say, Sakuno paled when she realized there was no way she could explain her situation without looking stupid.

"I… I was enjoying the view," she reasoned out pathetically.

Ryoma gave her an incredulous stare, "Hn."

Sakuno shifted uncomfortably on the ground. For one, Ryoma's gaze agitated her, and second, she really, really needed to pee.

"Where's your wheelchair?"

Sakuno's head snapped up at the question, only to be met by Ryoma's golden orbs. "H-How did you know?"

Ryoma crossed his arms and leaned by the vending machine, "Everyone's been talking about it."

"Oh."

There was an awkward silence as Ryoma turned towards the vending machine and bought his favourite flavoured drink. On the other hand, Sakuno continued to move in place as she tried her best not to glance at the vending machine and think about anything liquid.

_I need to pee!_ "Uhm… R-Ryoma-kun."

Ryoma turned to the girl as he drank his Ponta.

Sakuno looked away from the boy, but took this as permission to proceed. "Can you help me get up?" she whispered.

"Done enjoying the view?" was all she heard from Ryoma before she was suddenly lifted from the ground, strong arms wound around her shoulders as the boy supported her in standing up. Her heart beat rapidly at the close proximity of their bodies, and as much as Sakuno wanted to spare Ryoma from having her as a burden, her knees buckled and she landed on the concrete again.

If she stood up now, she wouldn't be able to hold it any longer. She'd die of humiliation if she peed right in front of Ryoma. She wanted to cry at her predicament.

_This is so embarrassing! _Sakuno stifled the sobs that were threatening to spill out of her mouth.

"Ryuuzaki."

Sakuno couldn't look up.

"Hey, Ryuuzaki."

Sakuno inhaled and exhaled slowly while trying her very best to hold her bladder.

"Ryuuzaki, what's wrong with you?"

"…Ineedtogotothebathroom," she mumbled just as the first few tears dropped on her cheeks.

"Huh?"

Sakuno bit the inside of her cheeks to keep from bawling out. "I need to go to the bathroom," she whispered once again.

Ryoma leaned towards the girl, his eyes boring on her lowered head, "Hn… I don't understand what you're saying."

Suddenly, Sakuno looked up.

Ryoma's eyes widened when he saw the tears streaming down her face. His words were caught in his throat as all he could do was stare at Sakuno's face. A big knot slowly began to form in his stomach. _Is she hurting? _

"Ryuuzaki—"

"I need to pee, Ryoma-kun!" Sakuno screamed, her cheeks flushed and her breathing ragged.

Ryoma was still for several moments before Sakuno's words sunk in. But even before he could lift her up from the ground for the second time, Sakuno's bladder finally gave in. It horrified Ryoma to witness the same thing he had seen on TV. He blinked several times, merely staring at the scene that unfolded before his very eyes.

At that moment, Sakuno looked exactly like that girl on TV.

"G-Go away!"

Ryoma was broken from his shock, immediately turning to the girl and trying to get a hold of her.

But Sakuno pushed him away, "L-Leave me alone!"

Ryoma tried again.

Sakuno did the same thing.

This went on for several minutes before Ryoma was the first to snap. Despite the girl's relentless protests, Ryoma scooped her from the ground, disregarding everything that just happened. He adjusted his hold on the girl, placing his hand on her back, and the other under her knees. The girl's legs were wet, but he didn't mind.

This only upset Sakuno even more, "P-Put me down, Ryoma-kun!" she cried, clearly embarrassed.

"No way," Ryoma replied stubbornly, walking even faster. "I'm bringing you to the infirmary."

Sakuno was at a loss when she saw something flash in Ryoma's eyes. Generally, the boy's actions befuddled her. But it also caused her heart to beat even faster. She knew she was falling… hard.

"I know."

Sakuno thought she would faint. She looked at Ryoma and realized he was staring at her openly. Deciding that the best course of action was to act dumb, she replied. "W-What are you talking about, Ryoma-kun?"

Ryoma looked away and muttered, "I know."

* * *

**A/N: **I know I said this was going to be a two-shot, but I figured things would be so fast-paced if there were only two chapters. I apologize for the extremely late update, and admittedly, I can't guarantee a quick posting of chapter three. But I'll try my best. Anyway, how was the chapter? I know there are some things that may appear a little confusing at the moment (like for instance, the running senior boys), but things will be revealed as the story progresses. **(;)) **So wait for the next update! Oh, and please review!


	3. Sweet Talk

_**Chapter 3  
**_Sweet Talk

* * *

Word that Sakuno was in a wheelchair spread quickly throughout Seigaku. The news hadn't been much of a shock to everyone, considering that both the students and faculty were well aware of her klutziness. Everyone had their own assumption regarding her lack of poise. Some would say that her twin braids were the cause of her downfall, while there were others who perceived it to be hereditary. Although the people of Seigaku could tell that Sakuno's being in a wheelchair was nothing colossal – she was Ryuuzaki Sakuno after all – everyone still carried a dose of concern for the girl.

Well, there was an exception.

Seigaku's hailed tennis prince, Ryoma, took Sakuno's fall to the extremes. Throughout the days that had passed, he had been constantly haunted by 'the fact' that his coach's granddaughter was going to die of an incurable disease. When he gave in to his curiosity and researched more about the Spinocerebellar Degeneration Disease, the dread for the girl's dismal fate began to slowly sink in his stomach.

He hated it.

He hated that he was actually _worried _about her.

Even though it was natural to be distressed when one knows about a friend's near death, Ryoma begged to differ. He hated the feeling of being upset, more so if it had nothing to do with tennis. So he tried his very best to suppress the raw emotions Seigaku's pillar of support shouldn't have, even if it meant he had to deceive everyone, including _her_, that he knew nothing at all.

Things would undoubtedly be better if he pretended he had no idea that she was falling.

* * *

The wayward dance of the trees was every bit entrancing. It was late November, and the autumn breeze brought about the coolness that hung thick in the air. Positioned right beside the railings of the rooftop, she enjoyed the vast scenery of students flocking together as they talked about their Christmas plans. The tennis courts were also in her line of sight; the previous bubbling thrill she'd feel whenever the courts were in view was now replaced with an unexplainable sense of dismay.

"Ne, Kachiro, isn't it your birthday in the thirtieth?" Tomoka asked as she popped an onigiri in her mouth.

"Mm," Kachiro nodded with a smile, "I'm surprised you actually remember, Osakada."

"Where will you be celebrating it?" Katsuo asked as he too, turned to look at Kachiro.

But before Kachiro could answer, "Hey! Did you know the new rollercoaster in Tokyo Land is opening on the thirtieth?" Horio interjected, looking smug. "My dad's friend gave us free tickets!" he announced proudly, his chin tucked up in air. "It's really cool if you have lots of connections, ne? To get things for free—"

"Why don't we hang out in Tokyo Land on your birthday, Kachiro!" Katsuo suggested excitedly. "And maybe can try out that new rollercoaster!"

"Kya! Count me in! It's been a long time since I've been to the amusement park!" Tomoka chirped, her eyes twinkling. With a smile, she happily turned to Sakuno. "Ne, ne, Sakuno-chan? Aren't you excited—" she stopped short when her eyes fell upon her friend. Realization hit her like a boulder. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her eyes suddenly downcast.

Sakuno was kindly smiling at her, her face flushed red. "You can go without me, Tomo-chan. It's fine."

"I-I take back what I said, Kachiro! I think a night's-out at Kawamura-senpai's is better, ne?" Katsuo said hastily.

Kachiro nodded. "I don't mind that set-up. I think it'll actually be fun!"

Horio looked aghast, "What the hell!? What about my tickets—"

Tomoka shoved an onigiri inside Horio's mouth, and diverted her attention to her friend in the wheelchair, "We will go to Tokyo Land when Sakuno-chan's ankle heals."

Sakuno's lips thinned. "G-Guys... You don't have to do this."

"I'd prefer a quiet celebration for my sixteenth birthday, Ryuuzaki. Don't burden yourself with such worries." Kachiro smiled reassuringly.

Sakuno's forehead creased. "But..."

The ongoing conversation ceased when the rooftop door was abruptly swung open.

"Echizen!" the freshmen trio said in chorus.

"Ryoma-sama!" Tomoka gushed, with hearts flying in the air.

All Sakuno could do was stare at the lean boy, who currently had a vexed expression, by the doorway. He was glaring holes at the freshmen trio. Memories of what happened by the vending machine seeped inside her head, and instinctively, she directed her wheelchair towards the horizon once more to avoid having him look at her burning face. She found the resolve to avoid him at all costs in order to retain her remaining dignity.

He saw her turn her back on him from his peripheral vision. His eyes narrowed considerably. "Sensei's looking for you."

"Do you think this has something to do with the Sports Olympiad two weeks from now?" Katsuo wondered.

"I bet sensei needs me for the championships! Heh, I have the skills unlike some people," Horio huffed with a grin.

Kachiro and Katsuo merely shook their heads in disbelief as Tomoka threw a random rice ball at the uni-browed boy for his arrogance. Under the lowered brim of his cap, Ryoma watched Sakuno stiffen.

"She also told me to tell you that she'll ask buchou to give you laps if you don't go now," he muttered nonchalantly.

"What?!" the freshmen trio cried, immediately gathering their things and standing up. "See you later, Osakada, Ryuuzaki!" they waved and rushed right inside the building.

When Sakuno whirled her wheelchair back towards the doorway, gold met chocolate brown for a brief moment before he turned around and left the rooftop.

* * *

_KRING KRING_

"I-I'm really sorry, Tomo-chan..."

"No worries, Sakuno-chan, no worries! I'm a big girl!"

The lunch bell just went off, and History class was up next. Both Sakuno and Tomoka were currently situated in the staircase of the first floor; the former doing her best to be less of a burden as the latter struggled to support her friend in the flight of steps.

First step. Second step. Third step—

"O-Ow!"

Tomoka instantly stopped in her tracks and worriedly turned to Sakuno, "I-Is it hurting? Your ankle?"

Sakuno turned a light shade of pink before shaking her head, "Y-You're stepping on my hair, Tomo-chan."

"I'm so sorry!" Tomoka cried and quickly removed her feet from Sakuno's braid. And it was in her haste that she lost her balance, with her friend's arm still securely wound around her neck. They were about to topple down the long flight of stairs when a pair of arms appeared out of the blue and brought Sakuno and Tomoka back on their feet.

"Are you alright?"

Both girls' eyes widened when they saw who saved them from having broken limbs, "F-Fuji-senpai!"

He smiled warmly, still not letting go of his hold on Sakuno. "Need some help?"

Sakuno turned a deep crimson when he kneeled in front of her while facing the staircase and gestured for her to attach herself behind him. "O-Oh, I don't want to be a bother, senpai—"

"Ryuuzaki," Fuji looked over his shoulder with cerulean orbs exposed in the open. "Do you want to fall again?"

Sakuno shook her head.

"Then trust me. You're not a bother," he smiled softly, small crinkles forming at the sides of his now closed eyes. When the girl still looked reluctant, he added, "Think about Osakada," he looked at Tomoka, who was presently trying her best to suppress her giggles.

"What! Fuji-senpai, are you trying to say that Sakuno's a burden? She would never be a burden to me!"

"Both of you almost fell awhile ago," Fuji reasoned out patiently, causing Sakuno to blush in embarrassment, "You wouldn't want to have Osakada in a wheel chair too, would you?"

* * *

It all happened so quickly.

He was on his way to English class when he caught sight of Ryuuzaki and Osakada struggling to climb the flight of stairs. He thought it was rather foolish, how Ryuuzaki would constantly apologize about her condition when it was blatant the people around her were very much willing to help her out in her predicament. Shouldn't she be thanking them instead, rather than causing more trouble by bombarding them with continuous apologies and a frown on her face?

It bothered him, why he chose to watch in the shadows instead of going on his merry way to English class.

It wasn't like he was worried about Ryuuzaki. It was because he didn't want to Seigaku's coach to be on-leave when they were in the heart of tournaments. Once Ryuuzaki gets herself hospitalized, their sensei would undoubtedly run to her side and abandon everything else. True, Sakuno's hospitalization was inevitable all due to her incurable disease. However, the Seigaku team need not be in such a pickle _that soon_.

After seeing Osakada lose her balance with Ryuuzaki in tow, he was about to make a run for it and catch both girls when he was beaten by someone unexpected.

"You're too slow, Echizen," was Fuji's words as he ran past him towards the staircase.

_Fuji-senpai, _his eyes narrowed when the Seigaku tennis genius said something that made Ryuuzaki blush.

Seeing that they did not require his help any longer, he turned around and headed for English class.

He decided that indeed, the girl was undeniably prone to falling.

_Foolish Ryuuzaki. _

* * *

"You need to rest, Sakuno."

"But—"

"I believe I am very much capable of washing the dishes."

"Obaa-chan—"

"Rest."

It was around seven thirty in the evening when Sakuno was sent to bed. The fact that was she was absolutely useless in the household distressed her. Not to mention the liability her friends held whenever she was around. Although Tomoka and the others appeared unperturbed at her need of assistance, their sacrifices troubled her.

Fuji-senpai was late for class and had to do extra homework to make up for the discussion he missed. Tomoka and she were late too, but Tomoka's declaration that she was her guardian throughout this 'ordeal' allowed the teachers to cut them some slack. However, this did not mean that they weren't going to get a sound lecture from their History teacher who strongly emphasized that even if everyone was ready to extend their help to her, she shouldn't disregard the sacrifices and consequences that followed after.

A sudden knock on the door broke Sakuno from her thoughts. The girl was taken aback when she saw the person standing by her doorway.

"Tomo-chan?"

"Sakuno-chan!" Tomoka cried, running towards her friend at top speed with a huge paper bag in hand. "I'm sleeping over tonight!"

"Eh? Really?"

Tomoka nodded and immediately plopped herself in Sakuno's bed. "Say, Sakuno-chan. Are you tired?"

Sakuno shook her head, "No."

Tomoka's grin widened, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, "Good." Then she opened the paper bag and brought out a make-up kit, a set of dvds, a plastic full of sweets, and a large container of strawberry ice cream.

Sakuno smiled when she realized Tomoka was doing all this to cheer her up.

"Well, shall we start with the ice cream?

"Mm!" _Thank you, Tomo-chan._

* * *

There was something different about her the next day.

"Ryuuzaki doesn't wear braids anymore?" Kachiro piped in that morning.

He lowered the brim of his cap in order to discretely scrutinize Ryuuzaki. Indeed, the girl had gotten over her childish braids and now wore her hair in a high ponytail. He concluded that this had something to do with her fall alongside Osakada yesterday.

"Way to state the obvious, Kachiro!" Horio said with a huff. "I heard from Kikumaru-senpai that Ryuuzaki would have sported another injury if it weren't for Fuji-senpai," he was evidently proud of divulging such information.

"Really?" chorused both Kachiro and Katsuo, interested.

As Horio went on and on about more things regarding Ryuuzaki — Ryoma was so sure half of what he was saying were made up — he soon became lost in thought.

Although he had been successful in acting like there was nothing wrong with Ryuuzaki for the past week, he could never deny to himself that there was _really _something wrong with her. It was disturbing to see everyone act so casual, _so clueless_, around her when she was going to die.

Perhaps running away from the truth was a bad idea.

Because no matter how many times he pushed away thoughts about her, he still could not help but picture himself catching her whenever she falls.

* * *

"Are you sure about this, Ryuuzaki? I can take your place if you want."

Sakuno shook her head. With the smile she plastered on her face, the boy knew she had decided and no measure of convincing can swerve her from it.

"Alright," the boy conceded with a sigh. "I'll tell Osakada then." And with that, the boy exited the room and left Sakuno to finish her cleaning duty.

The girl was adamant to make herself less of a burden and more of a helping hand despite her present handicap. All thanks to Tomoka, Sakuno felt much better and was able to strengthen her crumbling resolve to get through this trial with a smile on her face.

Ten minutes passed, and Sakuno was halfway done. It was only when she finished erasing the blackboard when Sakuno realized she wasn't alone. She was stunned at the identity of her unexpected visitor leaning by the back wall of the room.

"Heh, I didn't know it was possible to clean while in a wheelchair."

Ryoma detached himself from the wall and began walking towards the still shocked Ryuuzaki. He stopped when he was a meter away from the girl, but his eyes never left her burning face. It took several more seconds before Ryoma diverted his gaze away from Sakuno and directed it towards the pile of crumpled paper in the corner.

"But you're still mada mada dane," he smirked. He looked back at Sakuno.

The girl currently bore a resemblance to a tomato.

He stared shamelessly.

Sakuno turned even redder.

Silence.

"Why are you alone?" Ryoma asked all of a sudden, his tone indifferent.

It bewildered him why the girl merely turned fifty shades of red but had not uttered a single word. Moreover, it bothered him how talkative he appeared at the moment. Was Ryuuzaki still embarrassed about what happened by the vending machine that she wouldn't talk to him?

Well, not that he cared.

His eyes were a fraction wider when Sakuno pointed at her throat.

"You can't talk?" he whispered, unable to hide his surprise.

Sakuno nodded shyly.

_It got worse. _He involuntarily balled his fists.

"You're dying." It wasn't a question.

Sakuno's mouth hung open at the boy's uncalled for declaration. _Hah?_

* * *

**A/N: **LOL, Ryoma. You're making a big fool out of yourself! I apologize for the dramatic mood in the first part. It couldn't be helped, I guess. And what happened to Sakuno? Anyone who nails it will get cookies! Well, read the next chap to find out what happens next. Reviews make me update faster. **(:))**


	4. Set Up

_****__Chapter 4_  
Set-up

* * *

It was five in the afternoon when the sky began to darken.

Everyone, save for the varsity members, was expected to be out of school grounds by now, considering that one without a coat would not want to linger outside with the heavily felt autumn chill; not to mention that the finals was just around the corner.

Sitting right under the sakura tree in the middle of Seigaku grounds was Ryuuzaki Sakuno, who was neither a varsity member nor one with a coat. It may be a wonder why the auburn-head paid no heed to the lateness of the hour or the frosty breeze, counting her sickly state and her overprotective grandmother. However, there was no room for other thoughts as a certain statement persistently plagued her mind.

'_You're dying.'_

Ryoma's gaze was firm when those words came out of his mouth that she was left utterly dumbfounded for the next moments. She would have voiced anything in response to that puzzling declaration – well, it _sounded_ like a declaration to her – but all thanks to her _sore throat_, she merely gaped at the boy until he muttered something about tennis practice and then walked out.

The initial shock hadn't worn off actually, and the added confusion muddled her usual train of thought.

_What did Ryoma-kun mean by that?_

"Sorry I'm late, Ryuuzaki-san."

Sakuno's head snapped up. She was relieved to see that the person she had been waiting for all this time had finally arrived. Quickly, she grabbed the notepad she carried along with her and began scribbling on it.

When Fuji directed a questioning gaze towards her, _I ate too much ice cream. _Fuji nodded his head in understanding, _And I was just too early, Fuji-senpai! :)_ she assured with a smile.

The Seigaku senior returned the smile despite his realization – they actually agreed to meet at four o'clock. He was an hour late. "I'm sorry for making you wait. Sensei will have my head if she finds out you have colds because of me…"

Sakuno turned beet red when Fuji began removing his jersey and apparently had intentions of lending it to her. _I'm not cold, don't worry! And besides, I'll be going home with obaa-chan soon, so wearing it won't be necessary…_

"I'd rather not die," Fuji smiled and placed his jersey on top of Sakuno's shoulders anyway.

_Do you have the notes with you, senpai?_ Sakuno asked after a momentary silence.

Fuji nodded and handed her a big filler notebook, "Already studying for the finals, huh?"

Sakuno blushed but nodded nevertheless. _I find English especially hard. I'm sure your notes will help a lot, thank you very much._

"The topic on idioms isn't that difficult. You just have to remember that things don't exactly mean what they seem to mean. These expressions can be associated to metaphors actually," he supplied helpfully, and then stopped when he noticed Sakuno was suddenly looking at him as if he sprouted another head. "…Ryuuzaki-san?"

Sakuno was busy scribbling on her notepad the next minute.

_What does it mean when a person says: __You're dying__??? Is it an idiom?_

Fuji noted in amusement that the '_You're dying' _on the paper was heavily emphasized with an underline.

"That statement can mean many things. Death doesn't only signify death of the body, but can refer to death of the mind, heart, or soul. Perhaps, it would signify suffering of some sort… maybe a longing? Like, _you're dying _to be with a certain someone," he stopped short when his present company was slowly starting to resemble a tomato. "Ryuuzaki-san?"

'_You're dying' can mean like that?_

"Well, it would depend on the situation. Did something happen? Why do you suddenly want to know, Ryuuzaki-san?" he asked gently, his smile prompting Sakuno to explain.

If it was possible, Sakuno turned an even darker shade of red.

Her reluctance greatly spurred his interest. After a long silence of the girl's obvious dilemma, "I might be able to help you with it," he smiled handsomely.

The ace had been laid out on the card table.

Sakuno gave in.

After reading Sakuno's explanation on her notepad, Fuji couldn't help but chuckle at the revelation. "Echizen said that?"

She nodded, clearly embarrassed.

"It's possible that he finally knows you like him, Ryuuzaki-san," Fuji opened his eyes and grinned teasingly. "Now the question is: Are _you dying_ to be with him?"

Sakuno felt like she died right there and then in embarrassment.

* * *

"Don't you think ochibi's acting weird today, Oishi?" Kikumaru voiced out all of a sudden.

"He must have something on his mind, Eiji. But I'm sure it's nothing to worry about," Oishi replied reassuringly while neatly folding his jersey and placing it inside his bag.

"I wonder what Echizen's thinking about though," Kawamura piped in.

Momoshiro grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. "Heh. I bet it has something to do with his girlfriend!"

Kikumaru stood up at the claim. "Ochibi has a girlfriend!?"

The door in the locker rooms suddenly flung open.

"You're too loud, Kikumaru-senpai," Echizen said, a deathly glare on his currently trying-to-hide senpai. "Tsk, such gossip-mongrels," he dared say under his breath.

Unfortunately, his upperclassmen heard it, "Did you say something, Echizen!?" And enraged rants were heard in the locker rooms right after. It didn't take long for the regulars to calm down and begin heading out.

"Inui-senpai."

The data man stopped before he could exit the door and looked over his shoulder. "Oh, Echizen." The boy looked determined for some reason. "Do you need something?"

"Do you know about the Spinocerebellar Degeneration Disease?"

Inui's eyebrows rose, surprised, "What's with the sudden question?"

"Do you know about it or not?" Ryoma snapped.

_Brat. _Inui sighed. Zipping his bag open, he brought out a wrinkled, black notebook and flipped through the pages, "I may have something… What exactly do you want to know?" he eyed his younger teammate looking contemplative. _I wonder…_

"How quick does the disease spread before the person truly becomes immobile?"

Inui adjusted his glasses and scanned his notes. "It would depend on the person." When Ryoma merely bore a hole on his face with his penetrating gaze, he said, "I'm sorry, but I don't really have anything further on that disease other than its definition. You would have to approach a professional for specifics like that." He flipped his notebook close and placed it back in his bag.

When he received no response, he raised his head only to find Ryoma already walking outside, ready to go home.

"That was weird."

Inui looked up and found Fuji smiling at Ryoma's direction.

"Fuji. When did you get here?"

Fuji turned to Inui, still smiling. "I just came in from the back door actually."

"Ah."

"Hey, Inui," Fuji's smile turned into a full-blown grin at his next words, "I bet you're wondering why Echizen asked that question."

Inui's eyeglasses glinted. "I'm guessing you'd want something in return if you tell me?"

Fuji chuckled, "What made you think that? I merely want to state what I think. Don't you worry about Echizen?"

Inui felt a sense of foreboding at what his teammate just said. He knew he'd be dragged along to whatever Fuji was planning anyway, so why struggle? Besides, this called for more data, so it was a plus for him.

Inui smiled, "Let's hear it."

* * *

Things proved to be fairly interesting the next day.

"Mou… why do we always have to be dismissed five minutes late during History class," Tomoka complained as she pushed Sakuno's wheelchair inside the cafeteria. Loud chatter was instantly heard upon entrance. "Okay. History is officially my most hated subject!"

Sakuno looked over her shoulder and softly smiled at her currently distressed friend. _I'm sorry, Tomo-chan. If it weren't for me, we wouldn't have been delayed for lunch._

Tomoka was quick to assure, "Nonsense! We can always eat outside! I was planning to have a mini-picnic anyway, so complaining about the filled cafeteria was pointless actually!" She grinned brightly and immediately turned towards the doors when she saw someone waving from across the cafeteria.

"Hey! Osakada! Ryuuzaki! Over here!" Kachiro cried.

_I think we should stay. _

Sakuno knew Tomoka planned to eat cafeteria food that day, so her friend wasn't able to prepare anything for lunch. The auburn-head would have offered her prepared bento, but she knew Tomoka would downright refuse and would go on and on about Sakuno's health and eating habits.

After seeing Sakuno's sweet smile and hearing her grumbling stomach, Tomoka conceded and pushed Sakuno's wheelchair towards the freshmen trio's table where they were going to spend the rest of their lunch.

"Ne, ne. Aren't you excited for our field trip next week?" Tomoka gushed in the middle of eating her curry. "I wonder where we will be going though. Mr. Tamamura hadn't relayed the details yet—"

"I happen to know where we are going."

Tomoka snapped her head towards Horio, whose head was currently as inflated as a hot air balloon, "What? No way!"

"With my superior hearing skills, I've overheard the teachers talking about it," Horio interjected, a smug look on his face.

Tomoka rolled her eyes, "You mean you eavesdropped on them."

"Heh. I'm sure you're just jealous that I knew before you guys did. I can be at par with Inui-senpai now, don't you think?"

Everyone merely sweatdropped.

Horio cleared his throat, "Anyway, since it's our first year in High School, the first field trip is always special. We're going to do some hiking and bungee jumping in Osaka," Horio stopped when he realized he lost his audience. "Guys?"

"Will you be allowed to go, Ryuuzaki?" Kachiro asked expectantly, his full attention on the all the while silent girl in their table.

"It'll be difficult for you to join in the activities with your handicap," Katsuo stated.

"But you will be out of your wheelchair by then, right?" Tomoka looked hopeful.

Sakuno grew still at the sudden attention, but she eventually responded with a small nod and a smile.

"Hey, Echizen!" Horio cried out of the blue.

Sakuno's smile turned upside down.

From across the room, she saw Ryoma approaching their table. Her present company seemed to look forward having the rest of their lunch with the tennis prince, but Sakuno was opposed to this idea. Not when he recently declared that she was _dying_, which in her Fuji-senpai's interpretation, meant that he finally knew she liked him. She had not informed Tomoka of this development, for she was fully aware that her best friend would only encourage her to face him head on. However, she was more inclined to take flight in this situation, considering the number of times she humiliated herself in front of him.

He finally knew.

_Tomo-chan, let's buy some chocolate from the vending machine._

Tomoka's eyes widened at her friend's sudden request, "Eh? Okay, I'll come with you. Wait, hold on," After collecting her tray, she bid their goodbye to the freshmen trio. As they approached the cafeteria doors, they happened to pass by Sakuno's most dreaded person.

"See ya, Ryoma-sama!" Tomoka greeted amiably.

"Hn," was Ryoma's response as Tomoka pushed Sakuno's wheelchair past him. He let his gaze linger on the girl on the wheelchair for a few moments. He noticed the blatant way she ignored him – her eyes had been fixed on her hands throughout the transit.

She finally realized that he knew.

…and she chose to run.

His clutch on the lunch tray was firmer on his way back as Ryoma realized there's only one reason why she would act that way.

_She has it. She's dying._

* * *

"_Bunny and Parrot are fast approaching, now headed towards the tennis courts. Be on your posts!"_

* * *

Sakuno sat idly under the sakura tree, her currently favourite spot in the campus, while nibbling on her recently purchased chocolate bar. Tomoka had excused herself to go to the bathroom, but before doing so, strongly emphasized that Sakuno should not move an inch from where she was. She was absolutely fine with that arrangement since she planned to take the time to wallow in thoughts about a certain tennis prince as she indulged herself in chocolate.

"Don't you feel cold, Ryuuzaki-san?"

Sakuno stopped from taking another bite and was surprised to see Fuji standing right in front of her.

"You look like you enjoy the cold, but I don't think that's really good for your condition," he opened his eyes and smiled.

All Sakuno could do was blink, still rather surprised at his unexpected appearance.

His grin grew wider when he noticed what she was holding, "Chocolate? Don't you think that would only worsen your sore throat?"

Sakuno blushed and quickly began scribbling on her notepad.

_I was craving for it. One won't hurt, right? *u*_

Fuji chuckled, "It seems you won't be able to talk for a while now. Well, that's fine. You look more adorable when you scribble on your notepad like that." He laughed when Sakuno turned a deeper shade of red. "By the way, how's your ankle?"

_It's getting better. I'll be able to walk again in a few days._

Fuji's smile softened, "I see."

Silence.

"How about try walking, Ryuuzaki-san?"

Sakuno's eyes widened. _Eh?_

Fuji extended his arm and waited.

After several moments, Sakuno carefully stood up from her wheelchair. When she appeared rather hesitant in taking the first step, Fuji took the initiative to grab her hand and guide her. At this, Sakuno turned fifty shades of red.

It didn't take long for the two to walk – well, in Sakuno's case _limp – _to the other side of the area.

"Now you try walking alone," Fuji said, removing his hold from the girl.

Sakuno would have voiced her protest, but seeing her forgotten notepad on the wheelchair and Fuji's expectant smile, she took a deep breath and made an attempt to go back.

"Good job, Ryuuzaki-san," Fuji commented when the girl returned to her wheelchair.

Sakuno blushed. _I limped my way back, senpai. I had to struggle keeping my balance. I would have fallen flat on my face if you didn't catch me. T_T_

Fuji chuckled, "You're getting there. You just have to practice more, and you'll find your ankle healed in no time."

_I'll try my best to get better so that I won't bother people to catch me anymore. I really am clumsy. Sorry for the trouble, senpai. T_T_

Fuji reached out to pat Sakuno's head, much to the younger girl's surprise, "Just do your best, ne? You'll be surprised to see so many people willing to catch you when you fall."

* * *

Tomoka was on her way back to Sakuno when she met Momoshiro by the tennis courts.

"Yo, Osakada!" Momoshiro cried, running towards her.

"Momochan-senpai!" She waved.

"How's Ryuuzaki?" He asked as soon as he stopped in front of her.

The girl was taken aback at her senpai's sudden interest, but she answered nonetheless, "She's fine," Tomoka smiled. After all, there was nothing wrong with Sakuno having concerned senpai-tachi, right?

"That's good to hear! But I heard she's planning to join the Sports Olympiad. It's too bad she won't be able to join this year," Momoshiro said regretfully.

Tomoka shook her head, "She'll already be out of her wheelchair by then, senpai. The doctor said her ankle will heal in a five days," she smiled.

"Five days, huh," Momoshiro repeated, contemplation crossing his face for a moment before he returned to his cheerful state again, "Well, send my regards to her!" he said while slowly starting to walk away. "Oh, and try making her walk from time to time! It would quicken her recovery!"

"Okay! See ya!" Tomoka exclaimed as she thought at the back of her head that seeing Momoshiro was plain random.

_Doesn't he usually spend his entire lunch eating?_

* * *

"Osakada said she'll be out of her wheelchair in five days."

"Hmm… Five days is enough time."

"But how about her sore throat? She'll be able to speak soon, won't she?"

"Don't worry, Eiji. She seems to have the habit of consuming sweets everyday."

"But will ochibi take our bait? Does he really believe something as awful as that?"

"Hehehe. You'll see."

"Nyaaa ~ ! Fuji! Don't chuckle like that! You're creeping me out!"

"Hush, Kikumaru. For the meantime, everyone should prepare. There is a hundred percent chance he'll respond to it. Let's just hope everything goes according to plan."

"Yosh!"

"Mmph! Mmph! Mmph! Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!" _Sensei won't be pleased with what you guys are doing!_

"We can't release you yet, Oishi! You'll foil what we're planning!!"

All passers-by immediately took flight when they passed by the supposedly deserted shed.

It appeared that things would take an interesting turn soon.

* * *

Tennis practice ended early that afternoon.

As he placed his towel on top of his head, he couldn't help but get lost in thought.

He noticed she looked more exhausted than usual. Was the disease taking its toll? It won't be long before she would be asked to stay in the hospital. And how long would it take before everything becomes too late? Months? Weeks? Days?

And to add to his present worries, Karupin had been missing the entire week.

"Hahaha! That was a good one, Eiji-senpai!" Momoshiro barked in laughter.

"Is there ever a time when you'll just shut up?" Kaidoh murmured.

"What did you say, mamushi!?"

Ryoma slung his towel over his shoulder and replaced his cap on his head.

And why was it that everyone seemed so clueless?

"Yo, Osakada!"

He stilled.

Osakada = Ryuuzaki.

He looked up, only to find Tomoka approaching some of their senpai-tachi, _alone._

"I came to return the English notes Sakuno-chan borrowed from you, Fuji-senpai!"

Ryoma's eyes narrowed. _Ryuuzaki borrowed Fuji-senpai's notes?_

"Where is Ryuuzaki-chan?" Kikumaru piped in.

Ryoma stood up and was headed to the locker rooms. _Yeah, where is she._

"Oh! She's doing her cleaning duty. No matter how many times I insist to let someone else do it for her, she'd refuse and say she doesn't want to be useless."

Ryoma can't help but smirk at that.

"I'm guessing she's practicing walking right now?" Momoshiro asked, grinning.

Ryoma's smile disappeared in a flash. _Huh?_

"Oh yeah! There won't be a problem just as long as she remains in the classroom," Tomoka chirped happily. "She's alone right now actually, and currently, she's doing a good job walking without support, so there won't be much of a problem."

Ryoma did a double take and was currently frozen on spot. _She left her alone to **walk**?!_

"That's good to hear. Seems like Ryuuzaki would be better in no time," Fuji smiled. "Don't you think so, Echizen?" he turned to the boy, who was still as stone not so far away from them.

"Stupid," he spat in everyone's general direction and began heading out of the tennis courts.

"Ryoma-sama?!"

The present regulars, save for Tomoka whose mouth was gaping open, struggled to stifle their laughs.

Fuji's smile was from ear to ear when he saw Echizen take the route towards the year one building. "Don't worry, Osakada-san. Echizen's just off to get some Ponta."

* * *

"Twenty-six... Twenty-seven… Twenty-eight."

Sakuno stopped when she reached the other side of the room.

Fifteen minutes had passed since Tomoka left her to deliver Fuji's notes. After proving she was capable of standing and walking (limping) on her own, Tomoka approved of her attempts and even permitted her to practice in the classroom as she headed to the tennis courts.

But as Sakuno stood by the open classroom door, she had the perfect view of the floor's staircase. She couldn't help but imagine herself finally walk down the stairs.

_Tomo-chan will kill me for even daring to think of trying that now._

With a resigned sigh, she returned to the blackboard... when she caught sight of something odd by the window.

While trying her best not to fall on her butt, she quickly approached the window, slid it open, and grabbed the wiggling fur ball randomly perched outside.

It was a raccoon.

* * *

As soon as Karupin landed on the stranger's arms, he recognized a familiar scent nearby. Impulsively, he jumped off and followed the trail.

* * *

_Hey, where are you going!_

Sakuno began running (limping!) after her newly found pet, disregarding the fact that she wasn't allowed to leave the classroom and that she was still the clumsiest living being on the Earth. Meaning, some kind of disaster was bound to happen. And so, without a care of the world, she rushed right after the tiny animal currently making its way down the hall. As best as she could, she forced herself to move (limp!) towards the cat, knowing that the school did not permit animals inside. God knows what would happen if her History teacher lays his eyes on the poor raccoon. It was only when the fur ball leaped around a corner when Sakuno halted... and found herself on the very edge of the staircase...

falling down...

down...

down...

* * *

_'Was she getting better?' _was Ryoma's initial thought on the matter.

He was shocked to see her leaning by the window, looking radiant and carefree as if she didn't have an incurable disease. One look at her was enough to dumbfound him, but another look at what she had in her arms added to his extreme shock. He was about to step inside the classroom to grab Karupin away AND barrage her with questions, but he thought against it and decided to head back to the courts instead to assess some things. Ryoma decided to deal with Karupin after everyone else left... he didn't want any faculty member lecturing him about bringing a cat in school...

Back to his questions.

One. Was Ryuuzaki getting better?

Two. How come no one else seemed to know or care about her fatal condition?

Three. Why did he care anyway?!

And just when took the flight of stairs, he heard the soft pads of 'running'.

He looked over his shoulder, only to see Karupin in mid-air.

_What the hell!_

The cat eventually landed square on his face.

And it was at that exact moment when he heard a loud thud beside him.

Immediately removing Karupin off of his face, he paled at the sight of Sakuno wriggling at the foot of the stairs.

Ryoma gulped. _Shit._

* * *

**A/N: **Dun dun dun! Would Ryoma be held accountable to what happened? How would Sakuno react? And was this all part of the regulars' plan? Wait for the next chapter to find out! **(:)) **Review!

**P.S.:** I'm sorry if I wasn't able to send review replies for the previous chapter! Hopefully, I will be able to this time around. Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! I wouldn't have been able to update if it weren't for you guys! *winks*


	5. Courtship

_**Chapter 5  
**_Courtship

* * *

"No one here but you eh, Ryuuzaki?"

Three tall, leering senior boys loomed over her. She was frozen in place; not exactly knowing what to do or how to ward off the boys blocking her way. For one, they were a foot taller than her; intimidating them, much less telling them off was quite impossible. Asking for help was out of the question as well, considering the fact that she still didn't have her voice back. Because of the treats she received while she was confined in the hospital over the weekend, her sore throat essentially worsened.

With big, brown eyes, Sakuno stared back at the seniors in fear.

"What's up with your cast and wheelchair, anyway?" said the boy with jet black, spiky hair as he gazed at the highly uncomfortable girl, "Didn't you just scrape your knee or something? You don't really need all this, do you?"

"Little Ryuuzaki's so delicate," the boy to her right sniggered. "Too bad no one's here to keep her from getting hurt now, huh?"

.

.

.

"Take care of yourself, okay? Eat properly! And don't you even dare think of eating more chocolates! Oh, and don't forget to apply the cream and take your medicine! And please, please, don't do anything rash! Don't even attempt to stand up—"

Sakuno grabbed Tomoka's previously flailing hands and clasped it in her own. With an assuring smile, she nodded in response.

"It's too bad that you can't go with us in Osaka. I was really looking forward to you joining us, Sakuno-chan…" said Tomoka, eyeing her friend somewhat guiltily as if it was her fault that Sakuno couldn't join them in their trip.

Sakuno merely smiled in response, seeing that she had forgotten to bring her notepad with her that morning.

But this only heightened Tomoka's anxiety.

"Make it faster. We're going, Osakada!" cried Horio from the bus.

Tomoka ignored Horio and continued to fuss over Sakuno. "Will you be able to manage on your own, Sakuno-chan? I can stay if you want—"

With as much force as she could, Sakuno tried pushing Tomoka towards the other waiting students now comfortably settled in the bus. Tomoka was looking at Sakuno as if she just found out her friend had a severe case of leukaemia, but the girl gazed at her as if saying, _Don't worry about me. I will take care of myself, I promise._

But Tomoka was still quite reluctant to leave. "You know Sakuno-chan… I don't really trust you for taking care of yourself. Look at what happened when I left you to erase the blackboard for a few minutes—"

"Osakada Tomoka! We don't have all day!" roared one of the teachers in the bus.

"Osakada, Sakuno will be fine as long as I'm here, don't worry," said Sumire.

It wasn't long before the freshmen were off for Osaka. Sakuno, alongside her grandmother Sumire, watched as the bus drove off around the corner and disappeared out of sight.

"It seems that you're the only freshman here today, Sa-chan."

Sumire quickly took hold of Sakuno's wheelchair and veered it back towards the school building. Just as they were about to enter the entrance door, there was an unexpected sight that greeted them, standing right by the doorway.

Sakuno's eyes could have bulged out of her sockets at the revelation.

"What are you doing here, Ryoma? The bus just left!" Sumire was equally shocked at Ryoma casually drinking his Ponta as if he hadn't just been left by the bus.

Ryoma pushed himself off the wall and smirked at the still surprised Ryuuzakis. "I was just wondering where those who are staying would be having class today."

* * *

English had never been her favourite subject. Dangling modifiers and parallelism were enough to send her off the rockers, but she vowed to endure every painstaking lesson in which she had to struggle understanding the words that were coming out of her teacher's mouth. It was hard enough as it was, but that day's situation just had to make things a _tad bit_ more difficult for her.

_Focus, Sakuno. Focus! _she told herself as she attempted to read the passage again. The first time she read the text, she did not comprehend a bit of it _at all. I wonder how it feels to be a genius, _she thought bitterly as she stole a glance at the person sitting to her right.

Ryoma was done reading – _as expected_, Sakuno thought – and was now busy boring a hole on their English teacher with his cat-eye gaze. Mori-sensei had continuously yapped about appreciating the beauty and essence of literature and how the youth should follow the footsteps of such and such…

"Hn," Sakuno heard Ryoma grunt, a clear indication that he was bored out of his wits.

Sakuno thought that Ryoma's reaction was pretty much reasonable. Definitely more understandable than the passage they were supposed to read in fact. But what she could not understand was why Ryoma was with her in class...

"Echizen."

All three occupants of the classroom turned towards the doorway. It was Ryuuzaki-sensei.

"The deputy principal would like to see you."

Ryoma's previously impassive face was now contorted with confusion. Nevertheless, he stood up and quickly followed Ryuuzaki-sensei out of class, leaving Sakuno in a state of bewilderment.

"Please read the passage out loud, Ryuuzaki," said Mori-sensei, snapping Sakuno out of her daze.

Sakuno was about to stand up and do as she was told when she remembered that she could not stand up and read aloud at all. Well, considering her present state.

Mori-sensei sighed when she seemed to have realized her mistake. "Very well, Ryuuzaki. You will be excused for any reading now, also taking into account that it is as clear as day you have not understood a word of the passage _at all._"

Sakuno flushed.

"It would be quite difficult understanding your concerns in your present condition, but it would be manageable. However, seeing that we only have several minutes left before the next class begins, right now is not a good time to make up for the things you missed." Sakuno considerably darkened, "But of course, I already prepared a remedy for that." Now Sakuno looked curious. "I would advise you to ask help from a classmate, Ryuuzaki."

A sickening feeling was slowly starting to form in her stomach. Sakuno was well aware that at the moment, there was only _one_ classmate available for this job.

* * *

"Why are you here?"

Lifting his gaze from his interesting pair of shoes, he stared back at the school's deputy principal who had been watching him with faint amusement the moment he entered the office.

"I wasn't allowed to go, sensei," said Ryoma nonchalantly.

At this, the deputy principal smiled somewhat knowingly.

"Well, that is quite a revelation, Echizen-kun. I just received a call from your cousin actually. And she was asking for the address of the resort you were going to stay in Osaka because it seems that you have forgotten to bring your _packed _duffel bag, and she intended to bring it there for you."

Ryoma unflinchingly stared back at the upright man calculatingly scrutinizing his pokerface.

"I don't have a waiver."

Ryoma clearly remembers crumpling and giving it to Karupin as a toy before leaving for school that morning. It would be impossible for the deputy principal to find out about that now, wouldn't it?

"Ah. So you forgot about your waiver too." It wasn't a question. But much to Ryoma's surprise – although his expression hadn't cracked one bit – the deputy principal smiled. "I'm afraid your memory is going bad. This is unfortunate, Mr. Echizen. Most unfortunate."

Ryoma remained unresponsive, simply staring at his sensei currently feigning regret.

"Now, I don't know if you were hoping to skip school the moment you are unable to join the rest of the freshmen in the trip to Osaka. I hate to break it to you, but you would have to take your lessons normally even if it's only Ryuuzaki and you that are left in your batch."

The deputy principal clasped his hands together and smiled innocuously, "Which reminds me… I'm sure you know about Ryuuzaki Sakuno's tendencies."

Ryoma's lips thinned. Was his sensei going to divulge anything of significance about Sakuno? Not that he needed to know more. Ryoma believed that he is already adequately informed about the girl's condition.

"But you have to know that the teachers cannot be beside Ryuuzaki the entire day. Even Ryuuzaki-sensei cannot attend to her every moment since she still has her responsibilities to the school and the team, and you are fully aware of that. Now, speaking in behalf of the faculty members, I would like you to watch over Ryuuzaki and make sure she keeps out of trouble. I heard it was Osakada for this job, but since she's on her way to Osaka right now, we have no choice but to settle for you. Am I understood?"

Ryoma grimaced – not because he had to take care of Ryuuzaki, but because he didn't like being constantly reminded of what he had already intended to do.

* * *

The recess bell just rang.

With a last fleeting smile, her Geometry teacher stepped out of the classroom. Sakuno gathered her notebooks and placed them under her desk, after which she grabbed her wallet and notepad, and veered her wheelchair towards the door. She hesitated entering the hallways since there were already crowds of juniors and seniors streaming out of their classrooms to head to the cafeteria – they were all just so _big _compared to her. And it gave her the willies just thinking that Tomoka wasn't at her side right now.

"Hey."

She whirled her wheelchair, only to be met by a familiar pair of golden orbs.

_Ryoma-kun, _Sakuno blushed.

Ryoma was leaning casually by the doorway, his hands tucked inside his pants pocket. He wordlessly pushed himself off the wall and approached Sakuno as if staying with the auburn-head was something people would see Ryoma do everyday. Sakuno was still gaping at him, but he ignored this.

Once he was beside Sakuno, he met her eyes for a moment before positioning himself behind the wheelchair and began pushing Sakuno towards the cafeteria, "Let's go, Ryuuzaki."

* * *

Hailed as the school's Prince of Tennis, Ryoma was used to it by now. Pairs of eyes penetrating his back as if he was some kind of eye candy would have at least caused him to tell people off and ask them to mind their own businesses. But since he was already used to it, he was more inclined to just ignore these things and go about his merry way.

Taking a sip from his grape-flavored Ponta, Ryoma took this as the chance to look at the girl sitting right across him.

Sakuno looked pale and fidgety.

The boy cannot blame her. She must have had enough doses of stares in the hallways to make her anxious, but her fretfulness just had to heighten right now. Eating together earned them people having bizarre conclusions as to why that was.

Personally, Ryoma thought that eating with Sakuno was no big deal. For one, they knew each other. Unless he'd eat and laugh with Kite or Sanada like childhood friends, _then_ people should start freaking out. But it was just Ryuuzaki. There was nothing wrong with that. Second, she was _dying_. Even half-witted fools would know better than to leave a disabled, disaster-magnet girl alone. The sight of a girl lying lifeless on a deserted hallway was not a pleasant sight. And lastly, it was his fault. Sakuno was stuck in a wheelchair for God knows long because of _him._

_Karupin, actually, _Ryoma thought grimly.

Suddenly, Sakuno was moving away from their table, her eyebrows drawn together in a frustrated manner.

"Where are you going?"

Sakuno stopped in her tracks. With a fierce blush on her face, she turned to the boy who had regarded her for the first time since they settled in one of the cafeteria tables. When Ryoma, apparently waiting for a reply, remained looking at her, Sakuno hastily scribbled on her notepad.

_I'm buying a sandwich. :)_

Ryoma had to fight back a smirk at the doodled smiley. Without wasting another moment, he stood up, his figure towering over Sakuno, "I'll buy you one."

Before Sakuno could respond, he headed towards the counter, still ignoring the stares and murmurs he received upon transit.

As he purchased Sakuno's food, he couldn't help but replay the thoughts of Sakuno falling in the staircase over and over again. Right after Sakuno's fall that fated afternoon, he remembered that he realeased his anger by playing his father non-stop over the weekend.

Nanjiroh, the forever snoop he was, bombarded Ryoma with outrageous hunches as to why he was venting out. He mentioned things like, 'sexual tension', 'getting it on', and 'growing up'. For the most part, Nanjiroh teased him with falling for a girl. But because his patience had reached its optimum, Ryoma shouted, 'No, she fell on me!' before he could even stop himself. Nanjiroh insisted that his son meant, 'She fell for him," but Ryoma knew better than prolonging this kind of conversation with his father, so he stomped off to his bedroom even before Nanjiroh could tease him even more.

Before drifting off to la-la land that night, he remembered Sakuno unmoving at the foot of the stairs – it wasn't a pretty sight. Picturing it in his head made him feel things he knew he shouldn't feel. In fact, just thinking of Sakuno was already a bother, but he could not bring himself to stop doing it. As his conscience slowly began to eat him whole, Ryoma produced the resolve to catch her next time she comes hovering out of nowhere.

The thought of Sakuno falling was enough to send his insides churning.

* * *

Sakuno knew that sitting in a wheelchair would attract attention. But she did know that having Ryoma push her wheelchair would draw a battalion. Sitting with Ryoma had been really awkward. Considering the fact that she could not talk (or that she would have chosen not to talk even if she could because of the countless times she embarrassed herself in front of Ryoma), recess passed in an uncomfortable silence.

She struggled to engage herself in 'conversation' with him, but because the boy was content in sipping his Ponta in silence and not looking her way, she decided to occupy herself by eating.

But Ryoma just had to have her taken aback by volunteering to buy her food. And she wasn't sure if there was something wrong with her ears, but Ryoma actually sounded... as if he _cared_.

Sakuno quickly dismissed the thought, fearing that she would jump into the conclusion that Ryoma was starting to fall for her.

_Which is, of course, impossible, _Sakuno thought miserably.

The only thing that broke the girl from her hapless thoughts was the sudden appearance of a food tray on the table. A juice box, an apple, strawberry yogurt, and a bar of chocolate lay beside the sandwich Sakuno wanted.

_What's this? _she asked Ryoma right after she recovered from shock.

"Food," Ryoma said without missing a beat.

Sakuno blushed, _You know what I mean, Ryoma-kun._

But all Ryoma said was, "Better eat quickly. There's only ten minutes of recess left."

Quite reluctantly, Sakuno popped the straw in her juice box and unwrapped her sandwich. She was still confused with what happened, but seeing that Ryoma would not give her a direct answer, she decided to drop the matter and appease her grumbling stomach instead.

As she occupied herself with her food, Sakuno failed to notice the ghost of a smile on Ryoma's face. For the remaining ten minutes, Ryoma entertained himself by watching Sakuno wolf down the food in the tray.

* * *

The next lessons passed rapidly. Sakuno found them all quite uneventful, save for the detail that she shared all classes with Ryoma that day. Even if they had not uttered a word to each other all-throughout, Sakuno was satisfied to sit beside Ryoma. Ryoma was essentially not her classmate, and Sakuno only heard of his genius in class through the conversations flitting about in campus. Seeing him breeze through everything up close was exhilarating. Though she realized she was such an idiot next to him.

It was History class when things became more interesting: Sakuno's bladder became a serious nuisance.

For the corner of his eye, Ryoma saw Sakuno timidly raise her hand.

Furuki-sensei stopped his discussion and regarded Sakuno sharply, "Is there something you don't understand, Ryuuzaki?"

Sakuno blushed and quickly shook her head.

"No, you don't understand?"

Sakuno shook her head again.

"Then was it?" the teacher snapped.

Ryoma's eyes narrowed. Was it necessary to pull that tone on Ryuuzaki? Stealing another glance at Sakuno, he noticed that she was slowly starting to resemble a tomato. He watched the girl rip a page from her notebook and began writing something using a thick, red marker.

_I need to go to the restroom, sensei._

Ryoma had to stifle a snigger at Sakuno's desperate expression. It seems that the girl was now informed of her weak bladder and that it wasn't to be taken lightly.

"Echizen, accompany her."

The boy pretty much expected this, so he didn't think twice in standing up to accompany the girl. What had him taken aback though was Sakuno's resistance against the suggestion.

_There's no need for Ryoma-kun, sensei!_

Ryoma's eyes narrowed for the second time that afternoon. Was Sakuno actually pushing his help away?

"Stop being proud, Ryuuzaki," berated Furuki-sensei, causing Sakuno to turn scarlet. "I don't want to risk you falling over anything again."

* * *

_Thank you. You can go back in class now, Ryoma-kun._

Sakuno bit her lip when it appeared that Ryoma would not move an inch from where he stood. _This is really embarrassing, _Sakuno thought as Ryoma placed himself by the wall. Deciding to get things over with, she hurriedly wheeled herself towards one cubicle to finish her business.

* * *

Ryoma was startled by the loud bang inside the girl's restroom.

"Ryuuzaki!"

He swiftly rushed inside, the thought of him entering the girl's restroom currently not on his mind. His loud entrance in the room was enough to warn Sakuno of his presence.

"Ryuuzaki, are you alright? Where are you?"

His question was met by recurring taps on one of the cubicles. _Go away! I'm fine!_

"What, you need help?"

More taps. _No!_

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Ryoma was panicking. More taps ensued, and this made Ryoma panic even more. What if Sakuno accidentally dunked her head in the toilet bowl and was drowning in toilet water? As more taps resounded in the silence, soon enough it dawned on him which cubicle Sakuno was in, and he instantly resorted to kicking it open. He was on the verge of throwing a flying kick at the cubicle door when,

"Echizen, what the hell are you doing inside the girl's bathroom!" Arai cried, his eyes as wide as saucers. The Seigaku junior was frozen in spot right outside the bathroom.

"Senpai," Ryoma muttered.

"What are you doing there?" Arai repeated, now a bit calmer but still sounded suspicious.

"Someone needs my help."

"The hell! Who in the world would need your help in the _girl's bathroom? _Are you delusional?"

"No," Ryoma replied curtly, now turning to the cubicle door once more. "Do you still need some help? Tap once if yes. Tap twice if no."

He received two taps.

Evidently aghast, Arai watched Ryoma talk to the tapping cubicle. Currently, Echizen was giving an impression of a perverted psycho. Seeing that he was merely wasting his time gaping at his odd team mate, Arai was ready to leave when there was another explosion of taps from the mysterious cubicle.

"Is it safe to enter?" Ryoma asked.

One tap.

Without wasting another moment, Ryoma pushed the door open, only to find Sakuno awkwardly seated on top of the covered toilet seat.

"Can you stand up?"

Sakuno shook her head, her cheeks hued bright pink.

Ryoma didn't hesitate lifting Sakuno off the seat and carrying her towards her wheelchair, "Your legs are numb?"

Sakuno was too embarrassed to meet Ryoma's eyes, but she nodded her response.

"Arai-senpai, are you still there? Can you get Ryuuzaki's wheelchair?" Ryoma shouted.

"What the hell! I'm your senpai! You don't have the right to order me around!"

"As a senpai, aren't you supposed to help your kouhai in need?" Ryoma said coolly.

Sakuno blushed scarlet when she saw Arai-senpai, with a blush to match her own, enter the girl's bathroom and position her wheelchair properly.

"I swear if someone sees me in here, I'm going to kill you, Echizen."

"Try."

"Come on! Make it quick and drop her already."

"I'll tell you to sensei."

"I was kidding!"

_Why do I embarrass myself all the time? _Sakuno wished she could just be swallowed by the earth that instant.

* * *

As soon as the lunch bell rang, Ryoma and Sakuno immediately exited class to save themselves from being horded by the bigger students. Sakuno was surprised that Ryoma led her to the staircase leading to the upper floors, but the boy did nothing to answer her questioning gaze. Instead, he kneeled right in front of her and said,

"Hop on."

Sakuno's mouth hung open.

"Make it faster, Ryuuzaki."

Despite her clueless-ness to whatever the boy was planning, Sakuno extended her arms and wrapped it around Ryoma's neck. He was considerate enough to secure her legs for her, and the next moment, Ryoma gave Sakuno a piggyback up the flight of stairs.

The two comfortably situated themselves on the rooftop and ate their bentou in silence. Ryoma received occasional glances from his present company, but he pretended to be oblivious to this. It would seem that the girl was actually waiting for an opportune moment to start friendly conversation.

He was about take another onigiri from his bentou box when a piece of paper fluttered down on his grub.

_I really appreciate what you did earlier in the bathroom. Thank you, Ryoma-kun. __

He looked up expecting to be eye to eye with Sakuno, only to be disappointed for the girl had her head down and seemed to be occupied with stuffing herself with some curry. It amused him how Sakuno could eat so much.

Ryoma smirked, "Slow down, you might choke yourself and die."

Sakuno began choking the moment Ryoma spoke up. Evidently, the girl hadn't expected him to break the silence.

"I was kidding," he said, patting Sakuno's back.

Ryoma noticed that Sakuno's face was burning once her coughing subsided. But it irked him when she remained clenching her throat. She reached out for her water jug and began chugging down the contents of it.

His eyes widened minimally.

"It's getting worse."

Sakuno coughed out the water she just drunk, diverting her gaze towards the suddenly fearful looking Ryoma.

"It's starting to be difficult to swallow, isn't it Ryuuzaki?" Ryoma muttered woefully.

Sakuno merely gaped at Ryoma as if he had just sprouted another head. She couldn't find it in herself to respond to his questions for she was just reminded of the fact that Ryoma was finally aware of her affections for him. And it only occurred to her that the boy was currently using his metaphorical language once again.

"Wait here. I'll fetch the school nurse."

Sakuno was still gaping at him when he left. And it was only several minutes after those words were spoken when three senior boys caused further havoc to her day.

.

.

.

"Ouch!"

Sakuno was surprised at the outburst of the tallest boy. Not wanting to see anything gruesome after sensing there was going to be a fight, she immediately shut her eyes closed and strained to hear things instead.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Practicing." Sakuno's heart beat rapidly when she recognized the voice and the familiar thud of a tennis ball on the concrete.

"Hey, Tanaka, calm down. It's just a kid."

"Maybe we can ask for his lunch money, too— H-Hey! Keep that racket away!"

"I already told you, I'm practicing. Get out if you don't want to get hit."

Sakuno whimpered inaudibly.

"Who do you think you are? Ordering your senpai-tachi around?"

Footsteps followed right after.

_Ryoma-kun, run! _she thought frantically, still refusing to open her eyes afraid that she was going to witness something violent.

_Pok._

_Pok. _

_Pok._

And there was silence.

"Ryuuzaki, you can open your eyes now."

_Ryoma-kun…_

Gradually, Sakuno opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was gold. Ryoma was standing not too far away from her, and he was scrutinizing her while sporting a huge scowl on his face.

"You really are troublesome," Ryoma said. And to Sakuno's great surprise, he smirked.

_That's the nth time you saved me. :| _

"Tsk. You don't expect me to leave you to die," Ryoma muttered. "Are you alright now?"

_What made you think I'm not alright? _

Ryoma shrugged, "Well, you are the girl in the wheelchair."

Sakuno flushed, _I'm fine._

His gaze was penetrating, "Are you sure?"

She nodded,_ I'm sorry if you had to run and fetch the nurse for nothing. T_T_

"Mada mada dane, Ryuuzaki. I believe your illness has affected your eyesight," Ryoma smirked. "There are three unconscious bodies lying on the rooftop right now."

* * *

**A/N: **Happy birthday, Ryoma-kun! I apologize for the lack of updates, but school's been a pain in the past few weeks. It's a miracle I survived and got to write this chapter! Anyhow, I hope you enjoyed this. Definitely packed with RyoSaku moments. **(:3) **I want to know what you think of the chap! Was it fantastic? Dreadful? OOC? Please review! Reviews can serve as nice Christmas presents! I'll make sure to give out review replies as well. And you'll never know, but I just might update faster. It's Christmas break after all. **(;)) **

**ADVANCE MERRY CHRISTMAS!**


	6. Love Notes

_**Chapter 6  
**_Love Notes

* * *

"Move it!" Tomoka barked, her eyes blazing with resolve as she manoeuvred 39 kg of weight around the crowded hallway. In her haste to get her presently disabled friend out of the horde of sweaty, grimy bodies fresh from morning warm-up, she rapidly zoomed down the corridor, veering the wheelchair with expertise she had gained from the past weeks of assuming the role of a caretaker.

Rendered helpless and totally immobile, all Sakuno could do was close her eyes and grip the metal armrests of her wheelchair as she took a blind leap of faith in Tomoka with hopes that she would come out alive.

It was the freshmen's Sports Olympiad that day. The annual sports event was allotted in the month of December, where each class would compete against each other in the different sports modified by the faculty and specially handpicked students. The purpose of the event was to develop the motor skills of those both sports-inclined and not, who weren't part of any varsity teams, and ultimately strengthen the camaraderie of the school.

With hopes to represent her section in tennis, Sakuno continued having lessons with the resident tennis prince and signed-up for the girl's tennis team to at least get some leverage in the incoming tournaments. She was painfully aware that she wouldn't make the cut of becoming a regular with her current ability, so she devoted her time in practicing for the Sports Olympiad instead, content in taking things one a time.

It was such a pity that her in-born clumsiness snatched that opportunity like a thief in the night.

"Will you be able to see everything from here?" Tomoka asked as soon as they reached the bleachers directly beside the volleyball court.

Sakuno nodded and managed to say, "Thank you, Tomo-chan."

"Sakuno-chan! You know better than to strain your voice! You just got it back, for goodness' sake!" Tomoka reprimanded with her hands on her hips, evidently trying to pose an intimidating figure for her friend.

Sakuno smiled, "Goodluck, ne?" And spoke yet again.

"Ugh."

It wasn't long after Tomoka waved her goodbye and approached their class' volleyball team already gathered in the court. They were playing in the first volleyball match that morning, and because Tomoka was participating, Sakuno was forced to wear the same cheerleader outfit she wore in one of the tennis team's tournaments in the past. Given that she was still in a wheelchair, the least she could do was support her friend, so she acquiesced to Tomoka's outrageous request much sooner than expected.

Although she was utterly disappointed with the sudden turn of events, upon looking at the brighter side of things, she realized that she could take pleasure in her being in a wheelchair. Because of her accident, she was made aware of the people who truly cared for her.

_Tomo-chan… Obaa-chan… Senpai-tachi… Kachiro, Katsuo, Horio… Ryoma-kun…_

As the whistle was blown and the first player served, she could not help but squirm in her seat and blush fiercely at the latter thought.

The more she thought about Ryoma, the more she doubted last week's happenings. Ryoma was aloof, anti-social, and would not engage himself in troublesome things. But with the way he acted towards her, subtly concerned and would have no second thoughts of getting her out of trouble, it made her wonder if the boy had gone against his code and had finally fallen for her.

Wasn't it that he knew of her affections recently? That would explain his unexpected concern, wouldn't it? Why else would he bother with a directionally-challenged klutz like her?

"Ryuuzaki, watch out!" cried one of the girls in her class.

It was only then she noticed the airborne volleyball speeding towards her direction. She was frozen in place.

Just when she thought she would get hit, a hand came out of nowhere, catching the ball before it could come in contact with her face.

Looking up, she was stunned to see that her saviour was none other than the boy of her thoughts. The entire court was silent as he threw the ball towards one of the players and wordlessly pushed her wheelchair in a much safer area in the sidelines.

"R-Ryoma-kun…" she croaked out after snapping out of her trance, but the boy was already making his exit in that nonchalant way of his, acting as if he hadn't just done something so chivalrous.

There was a resulting uproar moments later, and Sakuno knew that he had successfully captured the hearts of every female in the area with that deed.

Sakuno would not deny that she was one of those girls.

But it elated her that unlike the other girls, she may have a sliver of a chance to have captured a bit of Ryoma's attention.

* * *

"I'm really, really sorry, Sakuno-chan!" Tomoka apologized for the nth time as she pushed her friend's wheelchair towards the tennis courts. "I shouldn't have placed you in there! God knows what your grandmother will do to me if you sport another injury." She shivered at the thought.

"No worries, Tomo-chan… I didn't get hurt," Sakuno assured with a smile.

"Kya~! And that's because Ryoma-sama came to save a damsel in distress! So gallant! So chivalrous! So cool~!" Tomoka gushed effervescently, with comical hearts floating in the air. Then she snapped from her daze, "Wait a minute! Didn't I tell you not to talk yet!? Geez, how many times do I have to repeat myself!"

Chuckling, Sakuno obliged and horizontally moved her fingers across her lips as if zipping them.

"Good girl," Tomoka looked satisfied and took a seat in one of the benches as soon as they arrived by the courts. "But you know… from what you told me last week… I really think that Ryoma-sama truly cares for you, Sakuno-chan."

Sakuno turned fifty shades of red.

Tomoka looked at her friend, her expression all-knowing. "No really! Why else would he do all those things, right? Buying you lunch, sticking with you all throughout the day, saving you from those bullies, giving you a piggyback… KYAAA~! Oh, and remember the time I had to return the Fuji-senpai's notebook? Senpai-tachi and I were discussing your condition and stuff when all of a sudden he storms out of the place and looked incredibly angry. Fuji-senpai said he got Ponta, but I really think that he went to look for you!"

Sakuno was speechless. Not that she could have spoken anyway since Tomoka will snap at her if she even dared to talk.

"And he _did _save you from that volleyball and transferred you in a safer place by the bleachers this morning! I mean, _come on_! Who would randomly appear out of nowhere to do all those oh-so-gentlemanly things?" Tomoka clasped her hands together, and so began her trip to daydream land.

_Mou… Tomo-chan's exaggerating… It's all coincidence… And Ryoma-kun had no choice but to stick with me the entire day… But he didn't have to treat me lunch… And give me a piggyback ride… And smile at me like that…_

Sakuno hid her face in her hands in embarrassment.

"You know! He might even be stalking you right now!"

Now _that_ just blew things out of proportion.

"Hey, it's Ryoma-sama's class up next~!"

They watched the representatives of class I-B enter the courts, with an incredibly self-satisfied Horio in the lead.

"Eh? Where's Ryoma-sama!?"

Sakuno gestured taking a swig of a drink.

"What? You want a cola?" Tomoka's eyebrows knotted. Sakuno opened her mouth and was about to speak when, "No, no! Act it out! Let's do charades… this is fun!"

Sakuno sighed. Having to act it out makes things more complicated, counting the fact that she wasn't particularly the best charade-r in town. Seeing the expectant look on Tomoka's face, Sakuno yielded. She pointed at the tennis courts and Tomoka and then took another imaginary drink.

"Ohhh~ You want us to have something to drink while we watch the tennis matches!"

Sakuno really did suck at this. What she meant to say was that Ryoma, whom Tomoka was asking about, was probably by the vending machines taking his usual dose of Ponta.

Tomoka stood up. "Stay here, I'll get the drinks— Oh! They're starting… And it's that idiot Horio playing first," she said, her attention diverted towards the courts where Horio and his opponent from another section were deciding on who will take the first serve. A hand on her arm merited her attention.

It was Sakuno.

"Sakuno-chan?" Tomoka's eyebrows rose.

Sakuno gave her friend a knowing smile. "I'll go get the drinks."

* * *

Sakuno wasn't surprised to see Ryoma by the vending machines, purchasing what could possibly be his tenth can of Ponta that day. Although she expected to bump into him in her little trip to get drinks, she still could not stop the uncontrollable frenzy her heart was having. It was all really because of what she deduced that morning, which Tomoka 'confirmed' minutes before.

He _likes _her.

The boy didn't seem to have noticed her approach though. But this was Echizen Ryoma who had superior senses. Perhaps he thought that she was just this random student who decided to make a detour by the machine, that's why he didn't bother acknowledging her presence. But then again, what made her think that he would greet her just because he figured that it was her, Ryuuzaki Sakuno, standing behind him, about to purchase two cans of Ponta?

He _did _take care of her last week, right? To the point of having to enter the girls' bathroom and rescue her from her terribly humiliating predicament in the cubicle! And how many times had he saved her and appeared before her despite the many times she embarrassed herself in front of him? That valour speaks for itself!

She flushed at the thought and once again buried her face in her hands.

The loud _clank _broke her from her ruminations. Looking up, she saw Ryoma bend down to get his Ponta from the hole. It took him quite a while to step aside and give way to her.

Not having enough courage to look at his face, she directed her gaze towards the machine and inserted the coins. She looked at the drinks and took note that Ponta was labelled number two. Then she noted with frustration that the button was too high for her to reach.

It surprised her when a finger pressed number two for her.

"What's the other one?"

She turned red when she realized that Ryoma was still beside her, impassively watching her while taking a sip from his can. She indicated 'two' with her fingers.

And so he pressed two again.

Two cans of Ponta dropped into the hole, and she carefully bent down to get a hold of both drinks. Her heart was pounding against her chest. Ryoma had done her another favour! Thoughts of him liking her caused her mind to overturn yet again.

Overwhelmed with the recent happenings, she decided it wouldn't hurt to verbally say her thanks.

She took a deep breath and said, "Uhm… T-Thank you… F-For this… and for everything else you've done last week… It's really nice of you to do that… I mean… I-I didn't really expect it from you… but thank you anyways… And- and- I was wondering if I can do anything in return—"

"Hey, are you seriously going to talk to the vending machine all afternoon?"

It was only then she realized that Ryoma was gone and that the people behind her had incredulous looks on their faces, thinking that she had lost her mind for expressing her gratitude to a vending machine.

She quickly escaped the scene, rolling the wheels of her wheelchair as fast she could but still careful that the drinks on her lap wouldn't fall off.

Why did she always embarrass herself? _Why_?

…And does Ryoma really _like _her!?

* * *

"Hey, isn't Ryuuzaki supposed to be up and about by now?" Momoshiro asked, watching Sakuno speed past the tennis courts in her wheelchair.

"I heard she had another accident last week," Kikumaru piped in, taking a bite from his burger. "Poor Ryuuzaki-chan, nya! She really worked hard for the Sports Olympiad!"

"I believe Echizen's to blame," Fuji declared, his cerulean orbs exposed in the open.

It was lunch for the upper classes of Seigaku, and the tennis regulars were all gathered in the rooftop. According to Inui, they would have the best view of all happenings from there. Currently, an ominous atmosphere had befallen the boys with Fuji's recent assertion.

"Fuji, that's a grave accusation," Oishi's eyebrows furrowed worriedly, "No one would want to see Ryuuzaki get hurt. Echizen would never do that to a friend…"

Fuji smiled, "I never said he did it on purpose."

Everyone perked up.

"What do you mean, Fuji?" Kawamura asked curiously.

"Haven't you seen Echizen take care of Ryuuzaki when they were left from the freshmen field trip in Osaka? Something must have happened to make him go to such lengths," Fuji explained.

"Fuji has a point. Echizen never bothered with her that much before," Inui interjected, his ever-ready notebook lying open at the palm of his hand. "Fifty percent he's guilty for aggravating the situation that's why he's compelled to take care of her… This is Echizen we're talking about. He just doesn't randomly volunteer to baby-sit."

"Don't you think it's because he likes her?" Kaidoh supplied before he could even stop himself.

"As much as I hate to do this, I have to agree with mamushi. We're underestimating Echizen's ability to like a girl too much! It's because he's finally fallen for her that's why he's doing all this," Momoshiro assured confidently.

"Ochibi's in love, nya~!" Kikumaru laughed heartily.

"What do you think, Tezuka?" Fuji turned towards the all the while silent Seigaku captain eating in the corner.

Tezuka merely replied with a pointed glare which clearly said, _How should I know?_

"Well, that settles it then," Fuji said innocuously. "We'll just have to force it out of him." He cracked a big, bright smile.

Everyone had the sudden foreboding for their kouhai.

* * *

Right after the boys' tennis matches ended, with class I-A on the lead – Horio was absolutely dejected when his match ended with a score of 6-1 – Tomoka was recalled for a meeting before the semi-finals. The girl had insisted Sakuno to join her, and she had actually agreed, seeing that she had nothing else to do and nowhere else to wander to. But just before she could tag along, another girl from their class' volleyball team approached and handed her a small piece of paper.

"Who's it from!?" Tomoka shrieked as soon as Sakuno began to read the mysterious note. But even before Tomoka could find out,

"Osakada!" the volleyball captain roared.

"I'm right behind you!" Tomoka shouted back exasperatedly. "Coming, Sakuno-chan?" she looked over her shoulder.

But Sakuno shook her head and held out the letter.

"Give me the details, alright?" Tomoka said as she began to run away from her.

Sakuno nodded with a smile.

As soon as Tomoka disappeared at the corner of the building, Sakuno headed towards her destination.

_

* * *

_

With a frown, Ryoma opened the door to the locker rooms.

He had to admit, he was pretty bummed at the fact that even if it was their Sports Olympiad, he didn't even get a moment to play tennis. The faculty's excuse was because of the notable gap between the others and him, so instead of letting him play, he was tasked to facilitate the activities.

Earlier that afternoon, when he was amusing himself with Sakuno's attempt to buy Ponta, 1/3 of the freshmen trio, Kachiro, called him over saying that he was needed in the courts since the tennis matches had already commenced. Much to his inner chagrin, he had to leave the girl and proceed to the games.

Why was she off buying Ponta alone in the first place? God knows what may have happened to her... That girl attracted disaster like a magnet.

"Idiot," he muttered under his breath and opened his locker.

A piece of pink, scented paper fluttered in front of him. He wasted no time grabbing it.

_Another confession?_

"Hn."

His usual routine whenever he would receive a love note is to scan the content of it, not bothering to read everything but just taking note of the sender, and then insert it inside a pocket of his duffel bag for later throwing. And that's what he did for this particular love note. Hastily opening it, his cat-like gaze browsed the incredibly pink and glittery contents before he stopped short at the very bottom of the page.

He blinked.

Glaring brightly at him in silver ink was the name, _Ryuuzaki_.

He did a back track and averted his attention towards the beginning of the letter. It read:

_Ryoma-kun,_

_Please meet me under the sakura tree ten minutes before the lunch bell rings. It's important._

_Ryuuzaki_

* * *

Sakuno wouldn't have complained waiting under the sakura tree in the middle of the campus if it was after school. But as of the moment, as streams of juniors and seniors were on their way back to the buildings and the freshmen were free to roam around the school grounds, she was very much visible to everyone in the immediate vicinity. She sat there stiffly, patiently waiting for her expected company and ignoring the unwanted attention she merited.

Then she saw _him _approach, all smiles.

"Sorry I'm late, Ryuuzaki."

She shook her head and mirrored the upward curving of his lips.

Fuji seemed delighted at this, "You don't have your voice back yet?"

"I-I do… but Tomo-chan's going to kill me when she finds out I've been talking again," Sakuno replied with a blush. "…but she's not here, so I guess it's alright."

The Seigaku tensai chuckled and appeared even more amused, "As your senpai, I also think you shouldn't strain your voice, Ryuuzaki. Sensei will be greatly worried if your condition worsened… your usual notes will be fine. Seeing you scribble entertains me."

Sakuno could have died in mortification.

"B-But I didn't bring my—"

Fuji placed his finger on top of his lips, "Shhh… No talking," he said with finality.

With a resigned sigh, Sakuno obligingly zipped her mouth, much to her senpai's amusement.

"Excellent," he grinned.

Sakuno began to fidget awkwardly in her seat as the minutes dragged on with nothing but persistent stares in silence. Fuji genially gazed at her with his usual smile in place and didn't seem at all fazed that he was making her feel uncomfortable. He stood a foot away, his hands inserted in his pants pockets, and seemed to have no intentions of talking soon.

Sakuno was at the peak of her patience, "Sen—"

"Shhh…" He motioned for her to keep quiet again. "No talking."

The girl impulsively puffed her cheeks in frustration. Why did he ask her to come here all of a sudden?

Resisting the urge _not _to look at her senpai, she looked up and met his steady gaze, deciding that it was best to let him know that she was getting impatient. She was taken aback when her senpai opened his eyes, revealing his mesmerizing cerulean orbs. She couldn't directly relay her frustration after that happened and was totally captivated with how pretty his eyes were.

"Ryuuzaki," He finally spoke.

Sakuno continued to stare.

"Would you like to go out with me during the Christmas break?"

That snapped her from her trance. "What—"

Fuji placed his finger on top of her lips this time, "Would you like to go out with me during the Christmas break?" he warmly asked again.

Sakuno was completely floored at the question.

Her confusion must have reflected on her expression because Fuji supplied, "I think that Ryuuzaki's really cute and sweet. I'd like to get to know you more. I promise to take good care of you," he smiled. "Go out with me," he bowed.

The auburn-head flushed a dark shade of red, both flattered and befuddled with the sudden turn of events. Although her senpai went out of his way to ask her out, she could not just betray the mounting affections she has for a certain tennis prince. Fuji-senpai was really sweet, funny, and nice to be with, but she still liked Ryoma. A lot.

When Fuji stood up from his position, he noticed the apologetic look on Sakuno's face. Sensing that he was going to be rejected, he whispered, "Go out with me as friends."

At that, Sakuno's expression softened. With a fierce blush on her face, she nodded her assent a moment later.

Fuji smiled handsomely, fondly patting Sakuno on the head.

"Oi, what'd you call me out here for?"

Sakuno stiffened at the voice.

Fuji smiled even wider.

Ryoma was suddenly standing beside her, looking at her with that penetrating gaze of his. For some reasons, he appeared absolutely aggravated, his cat-eyes sharper than usual.

"See you during the break, Sakuno-chan," the brunet said, much to Sakuno's surprise. He was about to lean down and peck his kouhai when the girl's wheelchair was hauled backwards.

"You're going to be late for class, senpai," Ryoma bit out over his shoulder as he steadfastly pushed Sakuno's wheelchair to God knows where.

Fuji watched them leave, a triumphant smile on his face. "Now what will you do, Echizen?"

* * *

"What's this?"

A piece of pink paper was tossed on her lap.

Sakuno looked up, only to be met by Ryoma's piercing gaze. She figured it was best to keep her eyes on her lap; she felt as if the boy could slaughter her right there and then with the predatory aura he was giving off.

They were currently inside a storage room with the door wide open. Ryoma decided a little privacy would be nice. An unsolicited audience would prevent him from getting the answers he wanted. However, the moment Sakuno opened the piece of paper, it dawned on him that the note wasn't from her. Her knotted eyebrows were adequate indication.

If that paper was really from her, she would be blushing to roots end right now.

"Damn senpai," he gritted his teeth.

Sakuno curiously gazed at him for both the letter and the broken silence.

And it was then she noticed the suspicious movement behind Ryoma.

Ryoma was quick to detect the alarm on Sakuno's face and immediately looked over his shoulder.

"W-Wait!"

The doors were slammed shut, and the storage room was bathed in darkness.

* * *

**A/N: **Don't you just love cliffies? Haha! Don't hate. I've already started writing the next chapter, so it'd hopefully be out soon. And it's a grapevine, people. Sakuno finally thinks that Ryoma's fallen for her, but does he really? Or is it still out of pity? And Fuji just has to complicate things, eh? Hihi. This chapter was not supposed to end like this, but I decided to cut it to maximize the drama. **(;))**

Oh, and if you're interested in more drama, I'd like to share the recent happenings in the authoress' life: Alas, I've graduated High School. Yes, it's unfortunate because "End of High School = No More Playtime". I'm entering college in a few months, and dear God bless me because I'm entering a _landmine._ I'm taking a pre-med course in the University of the Philippines, and I made it a goal to finish **all **my stories before I 'nerdify' myself this coming June. Pray for me, dear readers that I reach this goal. Because I'm telling you, the moment I begin my first year, it's a **longer than usual **hiatus. As in… _years_. HAHA. Kidding.

Anyhow, how was the chapter? Reviews would be nice. **(:))**

_This chapter's dedicated to Kemi-chii by the way. Advance happy buttday, love!_**  
**


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